The Secret Histories of Secondhand BooksThe personal dedications one finds in secondhand books are often as fascinating as the text. In honour of this, Wayne Gooderham of The Guardian is starting a new series showcasing his most intriguing finds.

Occupy Big Business: The Sharing Economy's Quiet RevolutionIntriguing article from The Atlantic about how ordinary people are re-negotiating their terms with big business — they want to spend less, do more, and solve problems together. They are the foundation of the new "sharing economy."Sweet Delight: A Brief History of the Mince PieThe sometimes surprising history of the mince pie. "Contrary to popular myth, mince pies were never made illegal by Cromwell, though they were stigmatised by Puritans. A satire from 1656 called Christmas Day pokes fun at such priggish zealotry: "Idolatrie in crust!"

La Tartine Gourmand: JamaicaBéatrice of the lovely La Tartine Gourmand has a long and wonderful post about her visit to Jamaica, with beautiful photos of the people, scenery and food she encountered in her culinary travels there. Her banana bread recipe reminds me of visiting Jamaica years ago as a kid, enjoying fresh baked banana bread (still the best I've ever had) every morning.